Pakistan Troops Retake Control of Buner Town From Taliban

Helicopter-borne troops seized control of the main town in Buner district early this morning as the Pakistani army swept through the Taliban-infiltrated district just 60 miles from the capital, Islamabad.

Fighter jets bombed Taliban positions in the hills around the administrative capital, Daggar, on the second day of an operation to drive up to 500 militants from the district, which occupies a strategically important position close to a reservoir, a motorway and the Margalla hills.

Residents reported troop movements throughout the night along roads closed to normal traffic. "Helicopters are moving over our heads and we can hear the sound of explosions," said Abdul Ahad Khan by telephone from Rustum, a village near Buner.

The assault came on the fourth day of anti-­Taliban operations in North-West Frontier province which are aimed at containing militants spilling out of the Swat valley, where a controversial peace deal – under which the government agreed to introduce sharia law – is coming under immense strain.

The offensive started on Sunday in nearby Lower Dir district where, following clashes, the army said it killed 75 militants and lost 10 paramilitary soldiers. An estimated 30,000 people have been displaced, the provincial government said.

"Pockets" of Taliban resistance remain in Dir, the military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas said. Some reports indicate that the fighting was more intense than the army suggested.

Abbas did not say whether Taliban fighters were resisting the drive into Buner, which has become the focus of international concern about Pakistan.

Last week, the Taliban provoked international outrage by storming into Buner, occupying government buildings and looting western aid offices, just days after the introduction of Islamic law in the area.

Although the capital was never in direct danger, US officials viewed the development as a red line and accused the Pakistani government and army of "abdicating" to the Islamist gunmen.

Yesterday, Maj Gen Abbas said the threat from a few hundred militants occupying a hilly area had been exaggerated, and insisted the army had full capacity to "eliminate" the militants. "There is no reason to be worried that they can pose any kind of threat," he said.

The current assault on Buner, however, is led by the Frontier Constabulary, an underpaid and ill-equipped paramilitary force that boasts a mixed record when fighting the Taliban. The regular army is providing air and artillery support.

The military operation puts pressure on the controversial Swat peace deal, signed in February despite a chorus of international criticism.

Speaking from his Swat stronghold, the militant spokesman Muslim Khan said he considered the peace deal to be dead in every district, except for Swat. If the army deployed fresh troops to Swat "then we will be fighting again", he said.

Sufi Muhammad, an ageing jihadi fighter who helped negotiate the peace accord, has not been seen since fighting resumed. A spokesman said all talks had been suspended until the army operation ended.

However, the peace deal was not entirely dead. A senior official with the Awami National party, which governs the province, said its new strategy was to expel the Taliban from adjoining districts through force but to preserve the peace deal in Swat.

There were no estimates of ­casualties from early fighting in Buner. Swat remained calm but the local media has already come in for criticism amid the rising tension.

Yesterday, tracts appeared in the valley, signed by the leader of a suicide bomb squad, warning reporters to write "positive" stories about the Taliban or face the consequences. Khan, the Taliban spokesman, confirmed the new edict. "Under Sharia law, if you tell a lie you must be punished," he said.